Scottish pubs without a pint

By Efrosini Costa |
May 30, 2013

Scottish pubs without a pint

Scottish punters are outraged at plans to phase out pint glasses in pubs throughout the Highlands.

Scottish pubs without a pint

Already outlawed from nightclubs, which are forced to serve all matter of drinks – from champagne to cocktails and spirits – in plastic cups after 9pm, the iconic pub pint glass may also be on its way out.

Even those who dabble in an occasional pint in the most rural locations of Scotland will be forced to savour their cold one from a plastic container. The move is one authorities hope will curb potential injuries from unwarranted violence.

But pub landlords have called plans to extend the scheme as “nanny-state” interference. They accused the Highland Licensing Board of treating their customers “like children”

“It is as if we cannot trust the adult of the species with glass. We give plastic to children and it should stop there,” Kit Fraser, owner of the Hootananny pub in Inverness, told reporters.

Mr. Fraser went one to say that the proposal to extend the use of plastic cups to pubs was “dreadful”.

“This is the nanny state at its worst and is putting out all the wrong signals.”

Fellow pub-owner Don Lawson, also the chairman of the Inverness Pubwatch, agrees. He believes the scheme should target specific “high-risk” premises and not extend to all bars.

“The biggest complaint I get from customers is about having to drink from plastic containers,” Mr Lawson was quoted as saying.

“You have to serve bottles of wine or champagne in a plastic glass. It’s not good for the image of the Highlands,” he added.

And their customers seem to agree, with many fearful that the plastic pint policy will tarnish the Highlands experience and impact on the taste of local beer and whiskey products,

The Licensing Board is inviting the public to give their opinions on its policies, including the plastic glass scheme, before the July 31 deadline. If approved, the policy could be adopted before the end of this year, phasing out the iconic pint from Scottish pubs indefinitely.